Chapter 230: Alteration (4)
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 230: Alteration (4)
In the ash-colored world, Alon was the first to move.
"!"
Alon closed the distance with such speed that even the Hungry Ghost reacted a beat too late, delivering a sharp kick to the creature's midsection.
Kwaaaaaaaa—!!!!
The Hungry Ghost was sent flying like a cannonball.
Simultaneously, the lightning surrounding Alon fanned out in all directions, searing everything in its path and tracing the silhouette of wings.
The sheer impact was far too immense to be the result of a single movement.
The mouths of the surviving merchants and soldiers hung open, and a glimmer of hope sparked in their eyes.
Having launched the Hungry Ghost like a projectile, Alon immediately reached his hand toward the sky.
Pajijijijijijik—!!!!!
Colossal bolts of lightning, connecting the grey world, discharged in every direction as a massive surge of electricity gathered in Alon’s palm.
The lightning, absorbing the surrounding electrical discharge with a terrifying momentum as if it would swallow everything—even Alon himself—grew large enough to split the ashen sky and earth in an instant.
Heavenly Punishment.
The lightning struck the Hungry Ghost as he rolled across the ground.
───────────!
The grey world turned pure white.
It consumed the senses of the merchants and mercenaries.
It sent tremors through the earth.
When their vision finally returned, what they saw was a conical crater carved into the ashen earth.
For a moment, the awe in the eyes of the merchants and mercenaries replaced their hope, stunned by the sheer, nonsensical power.
"C-crazy..."
"He's... he's still alive."
It didn't take long for their gaze to be dyed with horror and shock once more.
Inside the massive conical crater Alon had created...
"Heh—this is more than I expected."
The Hungry Ghost, who had been on the receiving end of the one-sided assault until just a moment ago, was looking at Alon with a bloody smirk.
His body was covered in wounds.
However, not a single one was deep enough to affect his combat capability.
Line, who had been staring blankly until then, furrowed her brow at the sight.
"..."
Alon, however, showed no emotional agitation whatsoever.
As I thought, it’s not enough.
The Hungry Ghost was practically oozing composure.
Alon wasn't surprised by this. He had expected it to some extent.
In my current state, the Hungry Ghost isn't an entity I can handle.
The leaders of the Four Major Factions.
They were characters who appeared in the mid-to-late stages of Psychedelia. Even in the game, they were entities that could only be barely managed when the protagonist and most of their companions were near the level cap.
Furthermore, though he didn't know how things had twisted this way, the Hungry Ghost currently seemed to possess the power of 'Greed.'
The monsters from the Other World that the Hungry Ghost usually led weren't originally such hideous, grotesque forms; they had a uniform appearance.
And the Hungry Ghost didn't originally have that human-shaped scar on his chest.
In other words, no matter what Alon did at this point, he couldn't defeat him.
"I was a bit surprised, and this is quite interesting, so I'll play with you a bit longer. Hehe."
As if he knew that fact, the Hungry Ghost waved his hand dismissively, taunting him.
However, despite clearly grasping this desperate situation, the reason Alon didn't feel despair was simple.
He already had a method in mind.
A way to deal with the Hungry Ghost standing before him.
"..."
Alon glanced toward Line.
He saw Penia, who had approached her at some point and was whispering something in her ear.
Pajijijik—!!
Without hesitation, Alon erupted with lightning and reached the Hungry Ghost.
This time, even though the Hungry Ghost caught Alon's movement, he stood still with a sneer, as if daring him to try.
His confidence was perfectly understandable, even to Alon.
Alon's divine power was slowly scattering as time passed, whereas the Hungry Ghost was perfectly fine, save for numerous shallow wounds.
Judging by the Hungry Ghost's personality in Psychedelia...
To him, Alon was likely nothing more or less than an entertaining toy.
But,
"Whew!"
That was exactly why Alon's plan could be completed.
The moment Alon reached the Hungry Ghost, he gathered all the strength in his legs.
As if responding, the surrounding current gathered at Alon's toes.
Pajijijik—!!
He whipped a kick into the Hungry Ghost.
With a massive BOOM!, the Hungry Ghost was sent flying like a cannonball once again.
Yet, he still looked at Alon with a smirk.
As if asking if this was all he could do.
But behind his expressionless face, Alon smiled.
With this, he had achieved his goal.
The Hungry Ghost's field of vision changed.
From a grey world of nothingness to a purple world with distinct color.
The moment the Hungry Ghost realized he had entered the Strange Gate, he wore a puzzled expression as he watched Alon follow him in.
Tzezezezek—!
Alon, who had been scattering lightning everywhere just a moment ago, immediately deactivated it and formed a hand seal.
Only then—
"!"
The Hungry Ghost sensed something was wrong.
What—!
A sudden change was occurring within the space.
For the first time, panic flickered across the Hungry Ghost's face.
The world of the Strange Gate, which had been perfectly fine just a moment ago...
Crack— Craaaaack!!!!
...began to collapse.
Though momentarily flustered by the sudden turn of events, he quickly realized the cause.
...This is dangerous...!
Realizing the collapse was Alon's doing, the Hungry Ghost tried to rush toward him immediately.
"!"
Unfortunately, he failed to achieve his intent.
The moment he tried to dash forward, a massive gate manifested above Alon's head.
"Pluto: Limited Deployment."
Immediately after, Line's voice reached the Hungry Ghost's ears.
"Divine Punishment."
A massive mechanical hand surged toward the Hungry Ghost.
The Hungry Ghost instantly twisted his body to dodge, pouring out countless monsters.
He tried to use them as stepping stones to escape Pluto's hand.
"!"
For a split second.
Penia's magic seized both of his legs.
The Hungry Ghost shattered the binding magic in an instant with a single shrug of his body.
However.
The fleeting moment bought by that magic...
Kwaaaaaaaa—!!
...created the opening Pluto needed to reach the Hungry Ghost.
Simultaneously, the six hands formed behind Alon's back—
Hand Ice Seal.
Six Knots.
As the ice seal was formed, the world of the Strange Gate shattered like glass, and the Abyss began to form.
Snow Flower.
The moment Alon formed the final seal.
The completely shattered world...
"!!!!!"
...banished the Hungry Ghost into the Abyss.
"N-now, Marquis! Stop! You have to stop! Aaaaaah! We're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling, we're falling—!!!!"
As Penia made a fuss upon confirming the Hungry Ghost had been ejected into the Abyss, Alon immediately cut off the magic he was channeling.
And then.
Snap—!
The shattered world of the Strange Gate began to regain its original form.
The world that had been cracked like broken glass was restored as if time were being reversed.
Thud, thud, thud—!
Finally, seeing that the void where the Hungry Ghost had been thrown was perfectly filled, Alon...
"...Haa."
He let out a small sigh and slumped down where he stood.
* * *
"...I thought I was going to die."
"Hehehe—how was it, Marquis? My perfect plan."
The Strange Gate had returned to normal.
As Alon muttered softly while looking at it, Penia asked with a face full of pride, as if she had never been making a scene at all.
Alon let out a small, internal chuckle.
"I was skeptical, but it was perfect."
"Right? I mean, I went to the Strange Gate alone after seeing your magic and finished all the calculations, so there was practically zero chance of failure."
"...Is that so?"
"Yes, remember when you stepped away for a bit recently? I went then."
"You saved us."
"Ahem."
Penia puffed out her chest and shrugged her shoulders as if saying, 'Praise me more!'
Normally, it would have looked like she was just showing off.
But right now, Alon was truly willing to praise her as many times as she wanted.
"Still, even though you warned me beforehand that time and space would be distorted in the Strange Gate phenomenon, I didn't expect it to be this much."
"Well, to be honest, I didn't expect it to be this intense either. Based on the level of magic I saw from you before, it should have been a bit weaker than this."
"Is that so?"
"Yes. Given your total mana capacity, I didn't think you'd be able to collapse the entire Strange Gate... I suppose there was a miscalculation?"
Penia fell into thought, muttering to herself.
Alon shifted his gaze to Line, who was staring blankly at the spot where the Hungry Ghost had vanished.
"Are you alright?"
"Ah—"
Only then did Line snap out of it and nod.
"Yes, Godfather. Thank you for your concern."
"I'm glad you're okay, but you don't look very well."
Line managed a slightly awkward smile belatedly.
"...I'm sorry, I must have made you worry. It's just—I'm a little concerned."
"About the Hungry Ghost?"
"Yes. I wonder if this is really the end of it."
At those words, Penia chimed in with a shrug.
"If that's what you're worried about, don't be. No matter how strong that Hungry Ghost guy is, now that he's been blown into the Abyss on the other side, we'll never see him again."
"...Can I believe that?"
"Hehe, of course. To begin with, the place beyond the Abyss has no mana or anything, and time and space are a tangled mess. Survival is practically impossible—well, maybe we could find a trace of him?"
Well, even then, his body would have been torn into trillions of pieces by the spatial distortion, so we might only find a single scrap of flesh, Penia added quickly.
"Ahem—so, Marquis."
"Yes."
"I did work quite hard, and I think I was extremely helpful, so—"
She glanced at Alon, her eyes darting back and forth.
Alon watched her for a moment before breaking into a chuckle.
"When we return, I'll give you another one of the artifacts I'm carrying."
"Really!?"
"Yes."
Kyaa!! I knew I could count on you! Penia's expression said as she jumped for joy.
She immediately turned around.
"Let's go! We have to finish our journey!"
With eyes sparkling, she strode out through the exit of the Strange Gate.
"Let's go as well."
"Yes, Godfather."
Alon followed behind Penia with Line, but...
Slide—!
Penia suddenly backstepped back into the Strange Gate.
"?"
Regardless of Alon's confusion, she stepped out of the gate again.
Slide—!
In just a few seconds, she backed away and returned once more.
"...What are you doing?"
Alon finally asked as the strange behavior repeated several times.
Then, Penia spoke.
"Marquis..."
"...?"
"Ahahaha—I think, maybe, something's wrong with my eyes... Something, something is strange."
She spoke with a laugh that was mechanical and awkward to anyone's ears.
As Alon stepped out of the Strange Gate himself, what greeted his eyes was...
"...?"
A barren land.
No, to be precise—
"...!"
It was a ruined world.
The world where nothing existed, the ruined world Alon had seen every time he went to meet Kailas.
"What...?"
In a world where everything was naught.
Alon could only mutter blankly.